Javier Bardem, in Palma: "Silence always encourages those who perpetrate crimes"

PalmaJavier Bardem defended this Sunday in Palma that people with public projection should express their opinion on major current debates. “Whoever has a loudspeaker, should do it. I don't demand it from anyone, but if you can, it's good to do it”, he stated during the presentation ofThe loved one at the'Atlàntida Mallorca Film Fest. The actor has justified this position, in addition to ensuring that “silence always encourages those who perpetrate crimes”.

Bardem, who stars in Rodrigo Sorogoyen's new film, made these statements during a press conference at Es Baluard, where he also assured that he faces the film's premiere in Spain, scheduled for August 26, “with great tranquility” after the good reception it had at the Cannes festival. “I know the film arrives, excites and moves,” he said. He also expressed that he is “very proud” to be part of a production that, in his opinion, brings together “a lot of talent” in front of and behind the cameras.

The loved one, directed by Rodrigo Sorogoyen and co-written with Isabel Peña, tells the story of a prestigious film director, played by Bardem, who, thirteen years after abandoning his daughter, hires her as an actress with the intention of rebuilding a practically nonexistent relationship with her. The film addresses family relationships, the weight of the past, emotional silences, fatherhood, and the power dynamics that are established during a shoot.

Sorogoyen explained that the project was born from a lunch with Isabel Peña and the actress Vicky Luengo in which they began to talk about their parents and fatherhoods. That conversation joined the two screenwriters' desire to make "another type of story in which there were no deaths or murderers" after The beasts. They also wanted to work with Luengo again and "dreamed" of having Bardem.

Feeling and soul

Peña has acknowledged that El ser querido has been one of the most complex projects of his career. The main challenge, he explained, was to create "a script as close to life as possible" that moved away from more defined narrative structures to focus on the relationship between a father and a daughter. "We wanted to get closer to this father and daughter with much more feeling and much more soul," he stated.

For her part, Vicky Luengo has argued that the film will connect with the audience because it starts from a very specific story that ends up being universal. According to her, practically everyone "has experienced some conflict with a paternal or maternal figure" and can identify with the story the film presents. The actress also assured that presenting the film on her native island is "very special".

During the press conference, Sorogoyen also praised the Atlàntida Mallorca Film Fest, an event in which he already participated last year. "I love it, I value it very much and I tell everyone about it," he stated. The director described the film selection for this edition as "brutal" and highlighted the work of the organizing team.

Furthermore, when asked about the documentary Suportant el paradís, by Marga Melià, screened at this edition of the festival, Sorogoyen lamented the impact of tourism on Mallorca. "When you see what it is becoming with tourism, your heart breaks," he stated. The director described the documentary as "very interesting and very necessary" because it shows "how we are capable of transforming or perverting a wonderful place, all for this idea of misunderstood progress that the documentary captures". "How long do we have to keep making money all the time? And in exchange for what?", he asked.